Venting chassis for a jar candle having a turbine for rotating ornamentation

ABSTRACT

The venting chassis includes a radial turbine and a ceramic base and elevated ornamentation platform. The ornamentation platform has a flat top, upon which the ornamentation is mounted and a plurality of legs, which support the platform above the base. The base has a central opening through which exhaust airflow is vented from the candle interior. The base includes a plurality of feet, which support the base above the brim of the jar candle, and an annular skirt, which extends into the mouth of the jar candle. The feet create an air gap between the base and the brim through which inlet air flow can enter the jar candle. The annular skirt acts as a baffle to channel and direct inlet air flow along the sides of the jar candle. The turbine is sandwiched between the base and ornamentation platform and rotates on an axle post mounted to the base. Animated ornamentation is mounted to a turbine hub, which protrudes up through a central opening in the ornamentation plate allowing the ornamentation to rotate with the turbine above the platform.

This invention relates to a venting chassis used atop jar candles, andin particular a venting chassis having an internal turbine for movingornamentation supported by the chassis.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Those skilled in the art have long known that the convection airflowfrom a candle flame can drive small turbines. Small turbines and fanshave been mounted to candles above the candle flame within the exhaustairflow stream, which simply spin or animate small ornamentation. Whileprincipally decorative in nature, candle powered turbines can be used todrive a wide range of animated candle ornamentation.

Also well known in the art are venting chassis that sit atop jar(containerized) candles. Venting chassis, such as the ones described inU.S. Pat. Nos. 6,585,510, 6,589,047, and 6,663,384, facilitate laminarair flow within the jar interiors as the candle burns, which improvescombustion and reduces soot. These venting chassis provide asubstructure for decorative ornamentation, as well as, the ventingfunction. The venting chassis allow the ornamentation to remain on thejar candle as it burns adding to the aesthetic appearance of the jarcandle.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The venting chassis of this invention is used with jar candles forfacilitating laminar air flow within the jar candle to improvecombustion and reduce soot, but also incorporate an internal turbine,which is used to animate decorative elements of the ornamentationmounted atop the chassis. The venting chassis includes a radial turbineand a ceramic base and elevated ornamentation platform. Theornamentation platform has a flat top, upon which the ornamentation ismounted and a plurality of legs, which support the platform above thebase. The base has a central opening through which exhaust airflow isvented from the candle interior. The base includes a plurality of feet,which support the base above the brim of the jar candle, and an annularskirt, which extends into the mouth of the jar candle. The feet createan air gap between the base and the brim through which inlet air flowcan enter the jar candle. The annular skirt acts as a baffle to channeland direct inlet air flow along the sides of the jar candle the turbineis sandwiched between the base and ornamentation platform and rotates onan axle post mounted to the base. Different pieces of ornamentation aremounted to a turbine hub, which protrudes up through a central openingin the ornamentation plate. These ornamentation pieces will then rotatewith turbine as a convection flow rises through the exhuast opening inthe base and is discharged radially through the turbine vanes betweenthe base and ornamentation platform.

Accordingly, an advantage of the venting chassis of this invention isthat it incorporates an internal turbine for animating decorative piecesof the ornamentation mounted atop the venting chassis.

Another advantage is that the venting chassis provides multiple heatshields for the ornamentation.

Another advantage is that the venting chassis encloses the spinningturbine between the base and ornamentation plate, which provides a safermore aesthetically pleasing appearance.

Other advantages will become apparent upon a reading of the followingdescription.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

A preferred embodiment of the invention has been depicted forillustrative purposes only wherein:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the venting chassis and oramentationseated atop a jar candle;

FIG. 2 is a side sectional view of the venting chassis and ornamentationseated atop a jar candle;

FIG. 3 is an exploded view of the venting chassis, ornamentation and jarcandle;

FIG. 4 is a side elevation view of the base of the venting chassis ofthis invention;

FIG. 5 is a bottom plan view of the base of the venting chassis of thisinvention;

FIG. 6 is a top plan view of the base of the venting chassis of thisinvention;

FIG. 7 is a side elevation view of the ornamentation platform of theventing chassis of this invention;

FIG. 8 is a bottom plan view of the ornamentation platform of theventing chassis of this invention; and

FIG. 9 is a top plan view of the ornamentation platform of the ventingchassis of this invention.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

The preferred embodiment herein described is not intended to beexhaustive or to limit the invention to the precise form disclosed. Itis chosen and described to best explain the invention so that othersskilled in the art might utilize its teachings.

The venting chassis of this invention is designated in the figures asreference numeral 10. As illustrated in FIGS. 1-3, venting chassis 10sits atop a containerized Oar) candle, which is designated generally asreference numeral 2. Jar candle 2 includes transparent vessel or jar 4filled with a quantity of wax and a cloth or porous wick. As shown, jar4 has sidewalls 6 and an inset cylindrical brim around the open mouth 9.The inset between brim 8 and sidewalls 6 form an inner shoulder 7.

Venting chassis 10 provides a functional substructure for supportingdecorative ornamentation and for facilitating laminar air flow withinthe jar candle to improve combustion and reduce soot. Typically, theornamentation, designated generally as reference numeral 12, takes theform of a molded relief, which can be painted or otherwise adorned.Ideally, the relief is molded from a poly resin material or ceramic,although any material may be used. Poly resin reliefs are preferable dueto their durability and easy of production. The relief is molded andformed into aesthetically pleasing shapes and configurations and bondedto the top surface of venting chassis using any suitable heat resistantadhesive.

Venting chassis 10 includes: a chassis base 20; an elevatedornamentation platform 30; and a turbine 40. Base 20 and platform 30 aregenerally constructed from any thermal insulating material, such asceramic, glass, or a heat resistant plastic. Ideally, these materials,glass, ceramic and plastics are easily formed and molded. Although,glass, ceramic and plastics are highly desirable construction materials,the base and platform may also be constructed from any other suitablematerial or materials without deviating from the principal teachings ofthis invention. The base and platform materials are selected to providesufficient thermal insular properties to shield any ornamentationmounted atop the chassis from the maximum heat generated by aconventional apothecary jar candle when the flame is at its closestproximity to the venting chassis atop the jar candle.

Base 20 is shaped to sit atop the candle over jar candle 2. Base 20 hasa central opening 21 through which exhaust airflow is vented from thecandle interior. Base 20 has an arched strut 22 that extendsdiametrically across opening 21. The top of base 20 has a plurality ofrecesses 23 and a raised annular flange 24. Three feet 26 extend fromthe bottom of base 20. Feet 26 support the base above jar brim 8 andcreate an air gap 27 between base 20 and jar brim 8 through whichambient air enters jar candle 2. An inset annular skirt 28 extends fromthe bottom of base 20. Skirt 28 acts as a baffle to channel and directinlet air flow along jar sidewall 6. As shown in FIG. 2, skirt 28extends down into jar mouth 9 below shoulder 7. The sidewalls of skirt28 have a six of depressions, which form six inlet air chutes 29,through which the inlet airflow is venting downward into jar candle 2.Platform 30 is a flat disc or plate, upon which ornamentation 12 ismounted. Platform 30 has a plurality of legs 32, which extend from thebottom of the platform. Platform legs 32 are seated in recess 23 in thetop of base 20 and abut against flange 24, which ensures that theplatform does not move atop the base. Platform 30 also has a centralbore 31.

Turbine 40 is illustrated as a radial turbine, but any type orconfiguration of turbine and fan, including but not limited to axialturbines and fans, may be employed within the teachings of thisinvention. Generally, turbine 40 is stamped from a single piece of thin,lightweight, resilient sheet metal, although the turbine may beconstructed from any lightweight, resilient non-metal material. Asshown, turbine 40 includes a flat top 42 and a plurality of vanes 42formed in its annular sidewall. Turbine 40 also includes a hollowcylindrical axle hub 46. Axle hub 46 is press fit through a center axialbore in top 42. As shown, turbine hub 46 rotates axially atop an axlepost 50 vertically mounted to strut 22. Axle post 50 has an elongatedtip 52, upon which axle hub 46 sits and a threaded end 54, which extendsthrough a bore in strut 22 and is secured by nut 56. Also, a flareddeflector 58 is secured to threaded end 54 of axle post 50 between thestrut 22 and nut 56. Flared deflector 58 directs the exhaust air outwardradially to the periphery of turbine 40 to generate increase torque.While illustrated as a positioned axially under the turbine andconfigured to radially direct exhaust airflow, deflector 58 may bepositioned and configured in any manner to enhance the operation ofturbine 40. Axle hub 46 protrudes through bore 31 in platform 30. Asshown, a piece of ornamentation 14 (a snowman as illustrated in FIGS.1-3) is mounted directly to axle hub 46 so that ornamentation piece 14will turn with the rotation of turbine 40.

Operation

As shown in FIG. 2, the thermal energy from the candle flame creates aconvection airflow, which powers turbine 40 to animate ornamentationpiece 14. The rising exhaust airflow passes through opening 8, and isvented radially around deflector 58. Turbine 40 then discharges theexhaust air radially through vanes 44, which turn the turbine about axlepost 50. The rising hot exhaust airflow creates a negative pressurewithin jar candle 2 that draws cool inlet airflow into the interior ofthe jar candle. Inlet airflow passes through the gap between base 20 andjar brim 8 and down through inlet air chutes 29. Skirt 28 directs theinlet airflow downward along jar sidewalls 6. Skirt 28 also physicallyseparates the opposing inlet airflow and exhaust airflow to reduceturbulence within the interior of jar candle 2 and stabilize the flame,which leads to a cleaner combustion process and reduced carbon residue(smoke) in the exhaust.

Advantages

One skilled in the art will note several advantages of the ventingchassis of this invention. The turbine is used to animate ornamentationatop the chassis. Integrating the turbine within the structure of theventing chassis provides a stylish, compact low profile design. Theturbine is located close to the flame, which maximizes the powergenerated by the turbine from the convection airflow and gives thechassis a lower center of gravity, which prevents the chassis from beingaccidently toppled from the jar candle. The spinning turbine is enclosedbetween the base and ornamentation plate, which prevents damage to thevanes, but also limits user access to the moving vanes, which may be asafety concern. Although, one turbine is shown, the chassis can befitted with multiple coaxial turbines that can be configured to animatemultiple ornamentation elements. In addition, gears, linkages, pulleysand other mechanical components can be operatively used with the turbineto create more complicated ornamentation animation.

The chassis design provides multiple heat shields for the ornamentation.The deflector acts as the first heat shield by dispersing the exhaustairflow radially to the edges of the turbine. The turbine body itselfacts as a second heat shield. Since the exhaust air is dischargedradially, the hot exhaust air does not vent directly onto theornamentation plate, which may cause localized hot spots in the ceramic,which can damage or melt the thermoplastic ornamentation. The elevatedornamentation plate provides a third heat shield, which insulates thedecorative ornamentation.

It is understood that the above description does not limit the inventionto the details given, but may be modified within the scope of thefollowing claims.

1. A venting chassis used with a containerized candle, where thecontainerized candle includes a fuel source burnt in the flame, a wickand a vessel having sidewalls, which defines an interior thereof forenclosing the wick and fuel source and that terminate in an annularbrim, which defines an open mouth, the venting chassis comprising: abase; a platform; and a turbine, the base shaped and dimensioned to sitatop the containerized candle over the mouth and having an exhaustopening therein for venting exhaust airflow therethrough when thecontainerized candle is burnt, the platform seated over the base, theturbine operatively mounted between the base and the platform, wherebyexhaust air flow venting through the exhaust vent in the base rotatesthe turbine when the containerized candle is burnt.
 2. The ventingchassis of claim 1 wherein the base includes a plurality of feet forspacing the chassis above the brim so as to allow inlet air flow betweenthe base and the brim into the vessel interior.
 3. The venting chassisof claim 1 wherein the base includes an annular baffle for directinginlet airflow downward along vessel sidewalls and for separating theinlet airflow from the exhaust airflow when the containerized candle isburnt.
 4. The venting chassis of claim 1 wherein the base includes astrut traversing the exhaust opening and an axle post mounted to thestrut, the turbine mounted to the axle post for axial rotation about theaxle post.
 5. The venting chassis of claim 1 wherein the platform has athrough bore therein, the turbine has an elongated hub extending axiallyfrom the turbine and protruding through the platform bore.
 6. (canceled)7. The venting plate of claim 1 and ornamentation mounted to theturbine, whereby rotation of the turbine rotates the ornamentation. 8.The venting plate of claim 1 wherein the platform includes a pluralityof legs extending downward from the platform to support and space theplatform above the base.
 9. The venting chassis of claim 1 andornamentation supported above the platform.
 10. The venting chassis ofclaim 9 wherein the platform constituting a thermal shield for theornamentation for protecting the ornamentation from thermal energyemitted when the containerized candle burns.
 11. The venting chassis ofclaim 1 wherein the turbine discharges the exhaust airflow radiallybetween the base and the platform when the containerized candle isburnt.
 12. The venting chassis of claim 1 and a deflector part mountedbelow the turbine for directing the exhaust airflow onto the turbine.13. A venting chassis used with a candle, the venting chassiscomprising: a base; a platform: and a turbine, the base shaped anddimensioned to cover the candle for venting exhaust airflow therethroughwhen the candle is burnt, the platform seated over the base, the turbineoperatively mounted between the base and the platform, whereby exhaustair flow venting through the exhaust vent in the base rotates theturbine when the candle is burnt.
 14. The venting chassis of claim 13wherein the base includes a plurality of feet for spacing the chassisabove the candle so as to allow inlet air flow between the base and thecandle.
 15. (canceled)
 16. The venting chassis of claim 13 wherein thebase includes a strut transversing the exhaust opening and an axle postmounted to the strut, the turbine mounted to the axle post for axialrotation about the axle post.
 17. The venting chassis of claim 13wherein plate the platform has a through bore therein, the turbine hasan elongated hub extending axially from the turbine and protrudingthrough the platform bore.
 18. (canceled)
 19. The venting chassis ofclaim 13 and ornamentation mounted to the turbine, whereby rotation ofthe turbine rotates the ornamentation.
 20. The venting chassis of claim13 wherein the platform includes a plurality of legs extending downwardfrom the platform to support and space the platform above the base. 21.The venting chassis of claim of 13 and ornamentation supported above theplatform.
 22. The venting chassis of claim 21 wherein the platformconstituting a thermal shield for the ornamentation for protecting theornamentation from thermal energy emitted when the candle burns.
 23. Theventing chassis of claim 13 wherein the turbine discharges the exhaustairflow radially between the base and the platform when the candle isburnt.
 24. The venting chassis of claim 13 and a deflector part mountedbelow the turbine for directing the exhaust airflow onto the turbine.